Chapter 2 – That Damned Cat! What? A C-Rank Mission?!
Naruki, still under that same, nigh impenetrable Genjutsu that had masked her true gender all her life, found herself sighing heavily. For the past three days, Team 7 had been doing numerous D-rank missions. As menial as these simple chores were, as that is what they truly were, chores that people were too damn lazy to do themselves, that wasn't what was currently troubling the Jinchuriki. No, the problem was the fact that not only did Team 7's teamwork truly suck, (after all, none of them could get along worth a damn and their Jonin sensei didn't do crap to help with that!) but Kakashi didn't even seem all that interested in actually training them.
Instead, Kakashi insisted that they needed to work on their teamwork and continued to work them on these D-rank missions. More than that, Kakashi never once lifted a finger to actually assist them with anything. For all the preaching the man did about having proper teamwork, he didn't seem the least bit interested in actually participating in the exercises. The silver-haired Jonin was a part of the team as well, and if he couldn't be bothered to put forth some effort, how did he expect his Genin to take even one step in the right direction?!
Currently, Team 7 was busy painting a fence. Yes, a fence of all things! How humiliating was that for ninja?! Shaking her head at the sheer irony that she'd be stuck doing such pointless things even now that she was a Genin brought a small smile to Naruki's face. Glancing to her right, the female Jinchuriki saw Sakura arguing with one of Naruki's shadow clones for getting too close to her precious Sasuke-kun.
Shaking her head at that, Naruki decided to look to her left, only to see Kakashi standing atop the fence reading from that same orange book he usually did. With how often I see him reading that, how has he not actually finished the book already? Almost immediately after her thoughts, Naruki smirked to herself and shook her head. It's not that he hasn't finished, it's that he can't stop reading it. No doubt his mind can't stop fantasizing about such things.
With a shrug, Naruki called forth a few more shadow clones and in no time Team 7 was finished with their 'mission'. As the group began their trek towards their next mission, as they had been assigned four D-rank missions for the day, Naruki looked up at her sensei with a smirk. Feeling a chill run down his spine, Kakashi glanced down at his Genin student and found himself frowning behind his mask. "Yes Naruto? What is it?"
Naruki laughed softly before reaching into her pouch and pulling out the next book in the series. Waving it around a moment, she saw she had the Jonin's attention. When he reached out to take it, Naruki quickly snatched it back and shook his head. "Nope. Not that easy Kakashi-sensei. You see, I had a little talk with Jiji about your lack of interest in the team." Seeing Kakashi's eye open wide, Naruki's smirk widened. "So, we agreed on a little plan to make sure you took training us seriously. First, there's incentive." Waving the book around again, Naruki made sure her Jonin sensei knew that this was the incentive.
After reaching their next destination, Naruki continued on as they proceeded to retrieve the Inuzuka hounds for their walk. "Of course, that was only the first step. Knowing it wouldn't quite be enough, but it would definitely be a good start, we found ourselves agreeing on something else." The more Naruto said the worse Kakashi began to feel. In fact, the Jonin sensei's face blanched and became increasingly paler. "You're going to train us Kakashi-sensei. Do a good job and you get to keep the book. Continue to do a good job, and I'll even tell you a little well kept secret about Jiji-sama. I assure you that it's one you'll like. Maybe you could even bond over this secret, discuss something you both cherish dearly."
Snickering to herself, Naruki stepped up close to the dog she was walking and patted its head gently, earning a reward in the form of its tail wagging happily as it began to lick at her hand. "Refusal to train us will earn you a day with a certain spandex-wearing Jonin for each day you refuse to train us." Slipping a picture of said Jonin out of one of her inner pockets, Naruki waved it around for Kakashi to see. "Jiji told me about your relationship with this man. In fact, he's the one that came up with this wonderful idea. But the best part is you're going to be forced into wearing the exact same thing as said Jonin." Laughing evilly, Naruki rounded a corner and waited for his inevitable acceptance to the deal.
Kakashi sighed heavily and dragged a hand down his face. Damn you Naruto. You may be Sensei's kid, but damn if I don't hate you right now! Falling into stride beside Naruto, the silver-haired Jonin eyed the young boy for a moment before sighing in defeat and nodding his head. "Fine, fine. You and your teammates will get your training." Reaching out to grab the book, Kakashi found himself flinching as Naruto slipped the book back into his pouch and sealing it tight. "There's more…isn't there?"
Naruki nodded and began to laugh darkly for a time before she looked back into Kakashi's face. "Fail to take this training seriously, fail to prepare us for the harder missions we'll inevitably be facing in the future, and Jiji-sama said he'll take away your books and burn them Kaka-sensei." At the look of dread on her sensei's face, Naruto laughed harder before walking ahead with the Inuzuka hound. Little does he know that Jiji would never burn those books. He cherishes them just as much as Kakashi-sensei does, if not more. It'd be nothing short of sacrilege for him to let any harm befall those books.
Behind them, Sasuke cocked an eyebrow as he watched Naruto walk further ahead of his team. Interesting. The dobe actually managed to get Kakashi to agree to train us. I suppose I owe credit where credit is due then. Good job Dobe. Smirking at that, the Uchiha walked past Kakashi and quirked his eyebrow again at the horrified look on his sensei's face. Shaking his head, Sasuke continued on and found himself wondering just how badly Naruto's works had affected their sensei. This really could be very interesting indeed.
One week later
True to his word, Kakashi had begun training them. It was obvious that teamwork exercises, true teamwork exercises mind you, were needed. While those were a main focus, Kakashi Hatake also focused on helping to refine their chakra control. He was initially surprised to find that Naruto had already mastered the tree climbing exercise, but he accredited that to the Hokage most likely having a hand in that. So, while Sasuke and Sakura worked on the tree climbing exercise, Kakashi had Naruto working on water walking. It was rough, but Naruto was starting to show progress in that exercise.
One thing that troubled the sensei was Sakura's physical state and low chakra reserves. The young kunoichi clearly had excellent chakra control, but that was to be expected. The other thing that troubled the Jonin was the fact that Sakura didn't take to being forced to train all that well. In fact, she oftentimes didn't seem to take it seriously, and would complain often about getting even a single speck of dirt on her face. For the pink-haired girl, looking her very best for Sasuke-kun was the top thing in her mind.
Oddly enough, Naruto had been the one to correct this problem. One day in the past week, Kakashi had noticed the blonde Genin take Sakura aside and speak to her. At first, the silver-haired Jonin expected the girl to begin shouting at Naruto as she so often did and try to pound his face in with her fists. However, that never happened. Instead, Sakura's face showed excitement and she was nodding her head in response to whatever Naruto was saying. When asked later what the blonde Jinchuriki had said to inspire Sakura to begin training as vigorously as she had, Naruto simply shrugged and replied with: "All I did was tell her that if she truly wanted to gain Sasuke's interest, she'd have to take training seriously. I made something up about how Sasuke liked true kunoichi and would start paying more attention to her if she became more serious about this. Other than that, a few sweet words here and there and she ate it up easily. Who'd have thought, right?"
After that, Kakashi had noticed a significant improvement in Sakura Haruno. Not only would she soak up everything he said and took to the training exercises he assigned her specifically, but she was actually eager to work with Kakashi in increasing her chakra capacity however possible! Kakashi had thanked Naruto later and even offered to treat the young lad to his favorite ramen. This, of course, is something Naruto had accepted, clearly excited at being treated to what he declared to be the 'best food in the world.'
Sasuke on the other hand was still as arrogant as ever. While he would gladly train with Kakashi and was picking up on whatever jutsu were taught him and the chakra control exercises, he still wouldn't cooperate very well with his teammates! No matter what he tried, Sasuke was truly a pain-in-the-ass to teach.
Sakura and Naruto were working together much better now, despite the fact that Sakura was still somewhat of a bitch to him from time to time. Kakashi had even participated in the teamwork exercises with his team from time to time to see how well they could all implement tactics, take orders, and think on the fly. Needless to say…Sasuke kind of ruined everything no matter what they tried.
At one point, Kakashi had even asked himself aloud why he had ever actually decided to pass the Uchiha. Naturally, Naruto chuckled at this while Sasuke snarled rudely at his sensei. In response, Kakashi had actually smacked the Uchiha in the back of the head and proceeded to give him a nice, long lecture on teamwork, much to the boy's ire.
However, the past is in the past. Currently, Team 7 was in the middle of a mission. Kakashi found himself groaning at this particular mission as he and his team were positioned at different points, their target surrounded. Speaking into his headset quietly, Kakashi's tone of voice was clearly one of resentment towards not only this mission, but of their damn TARGET! "I still can't believe this mission even exists, let alone as a D-rank. If anything, this particular target practically demands it be labeled as at least a C-rank. I'd even bump it up to an A-rank if it was up to me."
At this, his team almost face planted straight into the ground from where they were. Sakura's voice spoke up at this point. "Come on Kakashi-sensei, this mission isn't that bad." When she heard Naruto chuckling to himself, the pinkette grumbled quietly. "What's so funny Naruto-baka?"
Naruto smirked to himself from where he sat observing their target. "That's funny. When we went on this mission four days ago, you complained and started ranting about wanting to kill our target. You even said, and I quote: 'That damn cat marred my beautiful face! I'll kill that little pest the next time I see it!' Remember?" As the banter went on between the teammates, Sasuke decided it was almost time to strike.
Yes, it was the dreaded mission virtually every ninja, Genin through Jonin and even beyond were fearful of. This was the Tora recovery mission. A rather obnoxious, wretched little cat; that is what Tora was. For a reason as of yet unknown to the Genin of Team 7, this mission came up quite frequently. Tora would often escape from her owners, whom they later found out to be the Fire Daimyo and his wife. Of course, they had yet to actually meet either of them, but if the cat continued to run away on such a frequent basis, the team had to wonder just what kind of hell they put that poor cat through.
The team was pulled out of their banter as Sasuke rushed out into the clearing, diving at the cat only for it to jump, kick him in the face, and rush past him. Yes, the cat actually kicked him as odd as it sounds! Sakura took this moment to Shunshin (Body Flicker) in front of Tora and scoop her up in her arms. However, as with the previous time they undertook this particular mission, a dangerous glint appeared in the cat's eyes. Before the pinkette could react, Tora extended the claws on its front paws and began to scratch Sakura's face until she was forced to release her.
Sighing at this, Naruto jumped down in front of Tora and gently scooped that cat into his arms. Reaching up a single finger, he began to scratch the cute cat under the chin. When it began to purr in his arms, a soft smile graced the blonde Genin's features as he held it closer against him. "You can't be so rough with her. Tora really isn't bad, she's just frightened. It's obvious she doesn't want to go back to her owners, but my question is: Why?" With a shrug of his shoulders, the Genin began gently running his hands along Tora's soft coat of fur, eliciting even more purring from the 'deadly beast' as some chose to call her.
When his three teammates began to glare his way, Naruto took a step back and looked between the three of them cautiously. "W-What? What's wrong?"
The remaining members of Team 7 sighed and shook their heads, too tired of this mission to say what was running through their minds. Sasuke had the imprint of one of Tora's paws on his face while Sakura's face was scratched to the point she was practically unrecognizable except for her hair color. Kakashi on the other hand was wondering why the heck Tora had taken such a liking to Naruto when it seemed to hate most everybody. With a shrug, Naruto followed after his team, eager to turn this mission in and get to training!
Hokage's Office
Oddly enough, as soon as they walked through the door, a rather robust woman was there speaking with the Hokage. Upon turning to them, the woman rushed over and immediately snatched Tora up from Naruto's hands, much to the cat's ire. Almost immediately, it was crushed against her in a hug much too tight for the poor cat. When it let out a harsh cry of pain and began to struggle against the woman's grip, Naruto glanced to the Hokage for a moment before looking back at the woman.
"Ma'am? I assume you're Tora's owner, Madam Shijimi?" At her nod, Naruto reached over and freed Tora from the woman's grasp, taking the cat into his arms again. "I think I see the reason now why your cat continues to run away from you." Seeing the look on her face and the frowns he was getting from the others in the room, the blonde shook his head and sighed. "Hey, I'm not going to just sugarcoat it just because this is the Fire Daimyo's wife."
Turning back to the woman, Naruto nodded his head towards the cat in his arms. "Madam Shijimi, you need to be gentler with Tora. You appear to show your affection in a way that's actually harmful to Tora. That hug just now was the perfect example of what I mean." Seeing the scowl on the woman's face, Naruto took a step back and shook his head, holding the cat against him protectively. "You're hurting your cat Shijimi-dono. Be gentler. Scratch her chin gently and pet her softly like I'm doing. Play with her when Tora wants to play. Cats are interesting, and a bit harder to understand than some other animals are."
"Take dogs for example. They are very open about their feelings and it doesn't take much to see what they want. It helps that they are able to so accurately express their feelings. Cats tend to be quite a bit different. They're calm, relaxed creatures usually. They're very loyal, and most domesticated cats are very friendly and sweet so long as you show them the love they desire. Pay attention to them in a kind and gentle manner, don't hurt them, and cats will be some of the best friends you could ever have." Nodding at that, Naruto gently handed Tora back to Madam Shijimi. "Whether or not cats can understand what we say, you should still talk to her on an equal level as you would a fellow Human being. Show Tora the respect she deserves and she'll come to appreciate you soon enough. I guarantee it Madam Shijimi. If you heed my advice, I have a strong feeling Tora won't run away so much anymore, if at all. Don't be alarmed if your cat doesn't immediately come to you when you call, they tend to like to roam a bit. They don't normally go far though, so long as their owner is good to them. Most of the time, they'll return home when they feel like it."
Smiling softly at the Fire Daimyo's wife, Naruto turned and bowed to the Sandaime Hokage. "Jiji, mission success. Hopefully this particular mission won't pop up quite as often in the future." Looking back at Madam Shijimi and Tora, Naruto waved good-bye to the cat as they both left the office, the Daimyo's wife not speaking a word. It was as if she was lost in thought, contemplating what the blonde Genin had said to her.
The Sandaime soon began chuckling to himself as he watched Team 7 turn to him. "I'm not sure how to feel about this. As relieved as people may be if this works, there's also the fact that this mission often brought in a good sum of money. Ah well. Good job Team 7. If you're up for it, I have a few more D-rank missions available…"
Before the Hokage could even continue talking, Sasuke stepped forward and interrupted. "Enough with these stupid, meaningless tasks old man! As the last Uchiha, I deserve better than this. Give me something more worthy of my skills."
The others in the room groaned while the Sandaime narrowed his eyes at the young man. Deciding to ignore the outburst, he glanced to Kakashi and then at the other Genin of Team 7. "How do you two feel about this? Do you feel ready for a harder mission?"
Sakura was the first to speak up. "Hai Hokage-sama. We've been training hard and I think we're ready for a tougher mission. If it doesn't trouble you, please allow us something better."
Naruto sighed and then glanced at Kakashi for a moment before turning to his Jiji. "Jiji, I'll admit that I have mixed feelings about this. While I hate to agree with the teme, I do think we're ready for at least a C-rank. It's true we've been training hard, but our teamwork is still a little sloppy at times." Without turning his head, Naruto's eyes moved in Sasuke's direction and the Sandaime nodded his head knowingly, clearly understanding what it was Naruto was trying to say. "However, remaining in the village and doing these D-rank missions isn't helping. A C-rank mission would probably benefit us in the end."
The Sandaime then turned to Kakashi with a frown. "And how do you feel about this Kakashi? Do you believe your team to be ready for a C-rank mission?"
Kakashi sighed and rubbed his temple in frustration before nodding his head slowly. "Naruto makes a point. The teamwork exercises and D-rank missions can only do so much. Actual combat would benefit them in the end. It would also earn them some valuable experience. Even if all we end up facing is bandits or no opposition at all, I believe it would still be for the best. So yes, Team 7 is ready Hokage-sama."
Sighing heavily, Hiruzen grabbed a scroll off of his desk and tossed it to Kakashi. "Very well, you have your C-rank mission Sasuke." Glancing towards the door to his office and his secretary standing there, the old man nodded his head. "Please show Tazuna-san in."
While Sasuke had a rather smug grin on his face at having his way, Naruto stepped back with Kakashi and motioned at the scroll with a simple nod of his head. "How does it look Kakashi-sensei? Anything too dangerous?"
Kakashi gave an eye smile at that and shook his head, a brief chuckle emanating from his lips. "Ma ma Naruto-kun, are you perhaps feeling a little nervous?"
Naruto smirked up at his sensei before shaking his head. "No, I'm just concerned. As I said, our teamwork still needs improvement. While it's true a mission could help improve that particular aspect of our team, there's still the element of Sasuke being involved. If we're simply escorting somebody and all we can expect is some disorganized group of bandits, that would probably be for the best. If it's enemy or rogue ninja, no matter what rank they may be, there may be problems. You know Sasuke will want to 'prove himself'."
Sighing at that, Kakashi nodded his head and patted his young Genin on the head. "You have a point Naruto-kun. A very, very good point. Let us hope that there won't be any unexpected surprises on this mission then." Offering another eye smile, both Kakashi and Naruto turned to watch as Tazuna was escorted into the office. Naruto's face immediately scrunched up in disgust at the sight before her.
Tazuna was an old man wearing some simple clothing. A straw hat, disheveled clothing, no matter how well he did in smoothing it out and making himself look presentable, the clothing was still in a bad state. The worst thing was the smell of alcohol that the man reeked of. It didn't help matters that in his hand, he held a big jug full of what he could only presume was more of the alcoholic beverage he was partaking in. Sighing, Naruto decided to resist the urge to speak out in disgust of the old man. Instead, he opted to listen to what the man would say.
The old man glanced around the room before his eyes finally rested on the team that he assumed would be protecting him during this mission. Quirking an eyebrow for a moment, his eyes then settled on the Sandaime Hokage. "Are you serious? A group of kids are supposed to be guarding me? They look pretty weak to me. The only one that looks capable is their sensei there." Pointing to Kakashi, Tazuna then scoffed and narrowed his eyes as he glanced once more at the Hokage. "You sure this is the best you can give me?"
Sasuke looked about ready to retort to being called weak by a clearly ignorant man, but Naruto stepped forward and beat him to it. "I beg your pardon Sir, but you don't seem to understand the situation here. Why do you insist on trying to antagonize the team that's meant to protect you? Establishing a good rapport with those protecting you would serve you far better in the long run."
Tazuna looked down at Naruto and scoffed again. "A kid is trying to lecture me on how to do business now? Why don't you step back kid and let the adults speak? You don't have any place here."
Naruto simply sighed and shook his head before glancing to the Hokage for a little bit of help. Seeing Naruto's silent plea for assistance, the Sandaime nodded with a smile and stepped in. "Tazuna-san, you paid for a C-rank mission. The details you gave us said that the worst that could be expected would be bandits. Team 7 should more than suffice for such a mission. I can guarantee your safety."
Tazuna frowned at that before looking down at the kids again. "Fine then. I'm in a bit of a hurry though, so if at all possible, I'd like to set out tomorrow morning at the latest. Gives the kids time to pack their little toys." Chuckling to himself, Tazuna turned and, waving over his shoulder, stepped out of the office.
Kakashi sighed heavily at this before stepping forward. "Alright team. After training, you should head home, pack what you need for the mission, eat a healthy dinner, and then get as much rest as possible. We'll meet our client at the east gate at 9:00 AM. Be ready."
After watching his team step out, Kakashi turned to the Sandaime with a knowing glance. "Hokage-sama, do you get the feeling Tazuna-san is hiding something from us as well?"
The Sandaime Hokage sighed and nodded sadly. "His behavior was highly suspicious. The look in his eyes belied his true thoughts on the matter. Something's off. Be careful Kakashi and look after your team." With that, Kakashi nodded before swiftly disappearing in a Konoha Shunshin (Leaf Body Flicker). Seeing this, the Sandaime groaned and ordered somebody to clean up the blasted leaves. Damn it Kakashi, you did that on purpose! Is this payback for me taking away one of your books?
The Next Day
Team 7 plus Tazuna left the village early the next day. Or at least that was the plan. It would seem Kakashi had either overslept or arrived late on purpose, so they had left an hour later than they would have otherwise, which would have been at 9:00 AM. Tazuna was still playing the role of the grumpy Gus, but Naruki simply chose to ignore the old man. In fact, she began to question if becoming a grouch was just a sign of somebody becoming too damn old for their own good.
As they walked along, Naruki was actually trying to focus on a new chakra control exercise she had read about. The blonde Genin found information on it in a scroll that her Jiji had given her for completing her water walking exercises during the previous week. Currently, Naruki was trying to keep five leaves attached to her body in different places; one rested on her forehead, two were on the backs of both of her hands, and the remaining two were attached to her knees.
This particular exercise was quickly becoming a pain for her, but for an odd reason she just didn't quite understand. Oftentimes Naruki would end up leaving small cuts in the leaves and they'd end up falling uselessly at her feet. Kakashi kept a close eye on his Genin student as he attempted this exercise and found himself smirking underneath his mask. Interesting. I'll have to speak with Hokage-sama about this later. Based on some of the jutsu Naruto has shown during training, I would have expected a different elemental affinity. Based on what I'm seeing though, I'd have to wager a guess that Naruto's main affinity is wind.
Once again a leaf was cut, but this time it split almost perfectly down the center. The leaf on her forehead fell and Naruto found himself cursing before finding another leaf and attaching it to his forehead. If there was one thing that could be said for the knucklehead ninja, it was that he never seemed to give up once he had set his mind on something.
It wasn't much later that Naruki found herself distracted by something else. Slipping the leaves away into her pockets, the blonde Genin eyed a puddle on the road curiously before staring up at the skies. Hmm… Glancing back at her Jonin sensei, Naruki realized that he had already realized it. When he nodded at her, Naruki grinned before nodding back. However, rather than just stroll on by to let whomever was residing in this puddle lash out at them after they had passed, Naruki found a devilish smirk taking hold of her features. I'm going to play a little.
Stepping forward to the puddle, Naruki kneeled down and began poking at the water with her left index finger. After a moment, just to see if she could get a reaction from the shinobi hiding in the water, Naruki began scooping up dirt and tossing it into the water. Every now and then the water would ripple ever so slightly in response, but more often than not, it remained still. Shaking her head, Naruki leaned over further and whispered to the puddle. "Might want to come out. You aren't fooling anyone here."
Soon enough, tired of the annoying little Genin, two almost identical shinobi leaped out of the puddle and attempted to bisect the pain-in-the-ass, only for Naruki to go up in smoke. "Fuck! The little shit tricked us Meizu!" Meizu nodded to his brother before he felt a tap on his shoulder. Quickly spinning around, this particular Demon Brother received a rather rough punch to his face, knocking him back a few steps. Quickly recovering from the attack, Meizu attempted to lunge forward, only to receive a painful fire jutsu to the back thanks to one Sasuke Uchiha.
Gozu, noticing the predicament his brother was in, quickly went to assist him, only for that same blonde Genin as before to appear before him. Lashing out with his gauntlet, Gozu soon found that he couldn't quite reach the Genin. In fact, it felt as if he couldn't even bring his arm forward far enough to do anything. Glancing back, he saw that the chain connecting the gauntlets both brothers wore had been pinned to the ground with numerous kunai and shuriken.
Snarling, the Demon Brother quickly unhooked the chain and went to attack the Genin that had stopped him only to blink in surprise as numerous shadow clones sprouted all around him. Shit!
Naruto smirked and quickly went through the required hand seal for the jutsu his Jiji had taught him. Soon enough all the Naruto clones followed suit and they all slammed their hands to the ground, shouting out the name of their jutsu. "Doton: Doryūsō (Earth Release: Earth Flow Spears)!" Within an instant, small, concentrated points of earth rose from the ground in all directions and pierced the ex-Kirigakure shinobi, keeping him rooted where he stood.
The man screamed out in pain at all the earthen spears piercing his body, but what made it worse is he didn't even pass out right away. No, the man was still conscious, and he realized very quickly that nothing vital had been punctured by the small spears of earth. Narrowing his eyes at the blonde before him, Gozu coughed a bit before laughing harshly at the blonde Genin. "Heh, to think I'd be captured like this by a punk Genin of all things. Oh how the mighty have fallen."
Naruki sighed at that and turned to see that Sasuke had also finished mopping the floor with his opponent. Sighing at this, the blonde shook her head and looked at Gozu with a critical eye. This is all just going to go to the teme's head. Defeating a missing-nin by himself will only inflate the idiot's ego. Grumbling at that, Naruki flicked Gozu in the head and smirked as she dismissed her shadow clones and her earth-based jutsu.
When the missing-nin collapsed to the ground, panting as the pain wracked his body, Naruki flicked him in the forehead to get his attention. "Let me guess. You weren't just some random missing-nin out for a stroll? My best guess is you were after our client, right?" When she received nothing but a sharp glare from the missing-nin, Naruki sighed and shook her head before holding up the same hand seal as before. "I can use that Doton (Earth Release) jutsu as often as it takes to make you talk. Who are you working for and what do you want with our target?"
Gozu groaned before glancing towards his unconscious brother, now bound in chakra-restricting rope. "Ugh. Fine, I'll talk, I'll talk. Kami knows if we return to Zabuza-sama we'll be killed anyways. What have I really got to lose by telling you what I know?" Grumbling, the conscious Demon Brother turned to the Jonin sensei of the group before looking back at Tazuna. "Yeah, we're after the damned bridge builder. We were hired to kill him, to keep the idiot from completing that damnable bridge. I don't know all the details, but we work for Zabuza-sama. If you really want to know more, talk to the bridge builder over there. He can tell you a hell of a lot more than I can. We just do what Zabuza tells us to."
Before they could ask Tazuna for the details and why he lied to them, Kakashi stepped forward and kneeled down so he was eye level with the wounded Chunin-level shinobi. "Zabuza? Are you speaking of Zabuza Momochi, Demon of the Hidden Mist?" When the Demon Brother simply nodded his head in response, the silver-haired Jonin shook his head before rising and walking towards Tazuna. Without a word, he shoved the old man into a nearby tree and held him there with a kunai pressed against his throat. "You've put my precious Genin into a dangerous situation Tazuna. I want answers and I want them now. What the hell is really going on here?"
Tazuna flinched at the threatening tone that Kakashi took on before nodding very, very slowly and carefully. When the Jonin sensei withdrew his kunai, the bridge builder began to regale them with the tale of what had transpired in the Land of Waves in recent times. At first Team 7 was skeptical, at least until they heard the conditions of Wave Country. Naruto shook his head at the information and snarled, a nasty scowl now present on his face.
Moments later, Tazuna had finished recounting his tale to the group. This Gato sounds like a real monster. I don't care how tough this mission is, we have to help these poor people! Naruki thought to herself before rising to her feet. Gozu had already passed out from the blood loss, not that Naruki really cared. With a little medical attention, he'd no doubt be just fine. Looking towards Sakura, the blonde Genin motioned that she come over so she could talk to the pinkette.
When Sakura moved over to her blonde teammate, she had a look of concern on her face as she eyed Gozu. "I-Is he dead? D-Did you kill him Naruto?" Seeing her teammate shake his head, a saddened look on his face, she decided it was probably best to get to the point. "So what did you need?"
Naruto pointed to her pack and then to Gozu. "You have some medical supplies right? Can you please use what first aid skills you have to tend to this guy's wounds? I'd rather not have a death on my hands this early in my career." Shivering at the thought, the whiskered Genin offered Sakura a kind smile and a nod. "Please and thank you Sakura. We can tie the two of them up for other Konoha ninja to retrieve later."
Sakura raised an eyebrow before looking between her teammate and the masked shinobi that tried to kill them. "What if they don't come? Wouldn't they just die anyways after some time?"
Naruto shook his head before waving his hand towards their Jonin sensei. "Something like this has to be reported. It changes the mission drastically and there's a good chance we'll be called off the mission. Then, another team may be sent out or…worst case scenario, the mission is called off and Tazuna-san is left to fend for himself. But as for your question, don't worry. These two will be retrieved and taken to the T & I department I think."
Sakura looked horrified before remembering what Naruto had requested of her. As she got to work patching up Gozu's injuries, she turned her head slightly to look over her shoulder. It was just a moment, but she caught Naruto's glance before turning to finish her assigned task. "That's horrible. Poor Tazuna-san. We can't just abandon him, can we? Surely there's something we can do."
Naruto shrugged his shoulders before turning back to their sensei. "Kakashi-sensei, before you send your report to Jiji-sama, may I speak?" When the Jonin nodded his head for Naruto to speak, the blonde smiled softly before looking towards Tazuna. "Tazuna-san, I know how it may seem, and I know what may happen in regards to your lying to us, but I for one have no plans to abandon you or your country to suffer at the hands of Gato any longer. Even if it means I'm branded as a missing-nin or cast out from the village or whatever else may happen, I plan to see this mission through to its completion. Gato's a tyrant and he needs to be stopped. If we don't do anything to help you now, there's a good chance you'll die before you get anywhere close to finishing that bridge. So…you have my support if nobody else's."
Sakura piped up then before Kakashi or Sasuke could say anything. As she finished applying first aid to the Demon Brother and assisted in tying him up, she turned to Tazuna with a bright smile. "I agree with Naruto. I'm going to help make sure that you succeed. Come on Sasuke-kun, Kakashi-sensei; please say you'll help too."
Sasuke shrugged his shoulders and cracked open a single eye, staring at the bridge builder for a moment. "If this Zabuza is as tough as he sounds, it sounds like he'd be a good challenge for me to test my skills against. I'm in."
Kakashi frowned at that but shook his head. "You're all in agreement then?" Seeing the three Genin of his team nod, the silver-haired Jonin sighed and ran a hand through his silver locks. "Fine. I'll send a report to Hokage-sama to inform him of the situation, and then we'll be off. Just be careful. This is now an A-rank mission and I won't have anyone dying on my watch." Seeing the bright smiles on Naruto's and Sakura's faces, along with the arrogant smirk on Sasuke's, Kakashi sighed heavily before he wrote a report and sent it via Pakkun, one of his summons. "Come along then, we'd best hurry along before Hokage-sama tries to send a team to replace us." Chuckling to himself, the Jonin walked along with the rest of Team 7 and Tazuna. It would be some time before they reached their destination.
A short time after crossing the waters into Wave Country
As expected, Naruki had resumed the chakra control exercise as they proceeded along. She had made some progress, but was still experiencing some rather annoying difficulties. Deciding to speak with Kakashi Hatake later to see if he could offer some advice on what she was doing wrong, the blonde Genin put the leaves away again as they climbed into the boat Tazuna had his friend prepare for them.
The trip across the water had been uneventful and very, very quiet. Nobody was saying a word, but that didn't bother the blonde Jinchuriki at all. Instead, she simply removed a scroll from her pack and began to skim its contents. The fog was thicker than she expected, but it wasn't bad enough to prevent her from reading yet.
Whenever Naruki found herself alone, she would usually either read from scrolls such as these or train. It wasn't like she had any friends aside from her Jiji, Yugao-onee-chan, and the Ichiraku's. Nobody else truly seemed to care enough about Naruki to spend any damn time with her! So, Naruki simply read when possible.
Most often she would find herself reading about the history of the Hidden Villages or reading up on various jutsus that she found interest in. Seeing as it was hard for Naruki to get access to the library and its archives, the Sandaime Hokage was her primary source for these juicy scrolls full of information. Usually, whatever questions she might have or whatever help she might need on a particularly difficult jutsu, the Sandaime was there to assist her. In fact, he had practically raised Naruki her entire life thus far and done as much as he could to prepare her for what the future may hold in store for her. Hence, all the jutsu, all the training, and various other lessons that would help her in her career as a shinobi, or rather a kunoichi.
Sadly, as they crossed into the Land of Waves and trekked down the path towards Tazuna's house, the fog thickened. This, of course, made it quite impossible to continue reading her scroll, so the poor kunoichi was forced to slip it back into her pack. After a short while longer, the group heard rustling in the nearby bushes just off the path and Naruki reacted almost instantly, launching a kunai in the direction of said rustling. At this point, she also allowed the leaves to fall and neglected to pick them up. She would continue work on this particular exercise at a later time.
The blonde kunoichi stepped into the bushes to investigate, only to walk out again a few moments later with a cute little rabbit held in her arms. "I guess I was just a little jumpy. Then again, one can never be too careful, right?"
Kakashi narrowed his one, visible eye before glancing around. When he heard a faint whistling sound, similar to that of something flying through the air, his eye widened. "Everyone, get down, NOW!" Reaching over, Kakashi brought Sasuke down to the ground while Sakura dived on Tazuna to bring him down as well. Naruto ducked just in time to avoid the rather large blade as it flew overhead and embedded itself in a tree.
When the five rose again, Naruki was absentmindedly stroking the rabbit's fur as she stared at the man standing on the sword. "Well, I can't say I expected to run into you so soon. You're Zabuza right? One of those Demon Brothers told us about you. What's up?"
Zabuza quirked an eyebrow and looked at the blonde gaki for a minute before looking around at the others. "Okay, I know I'm getting ready to kill all of you, but I just have to ask. Is there something wrong with the gaki here?"
Kakashi sighed and shook his head at that question before offering a quick eye smile. "That's…a little difficult to answer Zabuza. There are times when Naruto's just a little, erm…off." Zabuza simply nodded at that before Kakashi walked over to the blonde Genin and patted him on the shoulder. "N-Naruto? You can let go of the rabbit now."
Naruto pouted at that and hugged the rabbit closer to his chest. "But…it's just so cute. Can't I keep it Kakashi-sensei?!" Rubbing his whiskered cheeks against the rabbit's cheeks, Naruto made little cooing sounds and just continued to smile happily.
Zabuza, meanwhile, found himself staring at the gaki with a hint of concern on his face. "Umm…I'm just going to go out on a limb here and say your Genin needs professional help and leave it at that. Sooo, while you take him to get that help, I'll just kill the bridge builder and be on my way. Sound good? Good." Nodding his head, the ex-Kiri swordsman took hold of his sword and began creeping his way towards Tazuna.
He didn't get far however as Kakashi soon appeared in front of him, swinging a kunai at his face. "Despite the oddity that is my student, I can't just take him away like you suggest. Nor can I let you kill Tazuna-san. Now leave Zabuza, before I am forced to take your life." Reaching up, Kakashi revealed his Sharingan and prepared himself for what would most likely be a difficult battle.
However, the oddest thing then happened. Naruto walked over and began tugging lightly on Zabuza's baggy pants. "Hey, hey. Zabuza. What's this cute little guy's name? Or have you yet to give it one? Do you have any more like this one? If so, can I keep them too?!"
Everyone was looking at Naruto like he was crazy. In fact, a short distance away, a Kiri hunter-nin, or at least a person dressed as one, fell out of the tree he was hiding in and hit the ground hard. The shock was that bad! All the while, the blonde Genin just kept smiling cheerfully as he continued to nuzzle the rabbit's cheeks. Oddly enough, even the rabbit seemed to be concerned about the weird person clinging to him right now.
Zabuza actually took a few steps back before looking down at the blonde gaki. "Gaki…you're starting to scare me. If you weren't an enemy, I'd take you myself to get some serious mental help." Looking to Kakashi, Zabuza rubbed the back of his head with his free hand. "Seriously, is this kid on drugs or something? He's freaking me out!"
Kakashi shook his head slowly from left to right before looking into Zabuza's eyes and shrugging. "Honestly? At this point, I don't have a clue. It worries me to say that this isn't quite the weirdest I've seen Naruto act. If anything, this is actually fairly mild compared to some of the things he's done before. I'm starting to think I should probably have Inoichi take a look and see what he can find."
Naruto frowned before tucking the rabbit safely away in his backpack, leaving it open a bit so it could both look out and get the air it needs. Grinning up at the swordsman, Naruto bowed his head politely before throwing a punch aimed directly at the man's crotch.
Eyes widening from the sudden attack, Zabuza used his sword to block before jumping back. "What the hell gaki?! How could you aim for a man's privates like that when you're a guy yourself?! Have some respect for your fellow man!"
Naruto cocked his head to the side and simply offered another big smile. "But you were wide open. I figured it was worth a shot. If nothing else, it'd at least keep you down for a time until you could recover from it." Shrugging his shoulders, the blonde walked over to Tazuna and proceeded to take up a defensive position around him, along with the other Genin of Team 7. Despite the odd looks his teammates were giving him, Naruto simply continued to smile brightly, clearly in a good mood after finding a precious bunny rabbit to look after.
The silver-haired Jonin sensei of Team 7 simply sighed and shook his head. He quite honestly couldn't believe the antics of the blonde knucklehead of the team, nor could he understand why he did the things he did. No, scrap that. Kakashi didn't even want to try and understand the oddity that was Naruto Uzumaki! Shaking the strange behavior off, Kakashi once again turned to Zabuza and readied a kunai. "Zabuza, perhaps we should just focus on the fight for now."
Zabuza nodded slowly before shooting a nasty glare at Naruto. "I don't care how mentally damaged you are, you don't go for another man's junk gaki! After I'm done with your precious sensei and the bridge builder, I'll cut your fucking nads off to show you how it feels!"
Naruto quirked an eyebrow at that before glancing down and shrugging. Don't have any 'nads' Zabuza, but whatever. I'll let you rant and rave as you'd like. As long as I get to keep this cute wittle bunny I'm happy!
Zabuza's eyebrow twitched dangerously as a small tick mark formed on his forehead. "Kakashi…I'm going to kill that damn gaki. I swear to Kami I will. How the hell did an insane little shit like that end up passing the academy?! Didn't you people think to run some kind of scan or something to make sure the kid was mentally stable?!"
Kakashi let out a long, drawn out sigh before choosing to flash through a series of hand seals. The Jonin was tired of the banter and just wanted to get this over with so he could get to Tazuna's house and do something about this growing headache. Once his hands landed on the last seal, he brought his hand up to his mouth and shouted out: "Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique)!"
In an instant, a large fireball erupted before Kakashi and went rushing towards Zabuza. The Demon of the Hidden Mist quickly used a Suiton (Water Release) jutsu to counter the jutsu. As a result, a heavy mist spread across the area. With a smirk, Zabuza went through a few hand seals before shouting out: "Kirigakure no Jutsu (Hiding in Mist Technique)!" With this, the mist thickened to the point it was impossible to see more than a few inches in front of your face.
Kakashi stepped closer to his team and warned them to be on their guard. As the silver-haired Jonin tried to pinpoint his enemy in the heavy mist, he could hear his enemy's voice echoing all around them. It seemed the brute of a man was talking about the various spots one could strike to land a truly lethal blow on a target almost instantly. When Kakashi realized he had appeared in the middle of the Genin's formation, right behind Tazuna, the Sharingan-wielding Jonin prepared to move, only to hear the most gut wrenching cry of pain come from Zabuza.
Blinking in confusion, Kakashi dispersed the Kirigakure no Jutsu by flaring up his chakra before he saw what had happened to the poor swordsman. Shuddering in pure horror at what one of his Genin did, Kakashi was forced to turn away in pity for the man.
"Yay! I knew I could get ya if I just waited for the right moment!" Naruto shouted happily as he retracted his fist from the spot where Zabuza's man parts once stood. How the Genin knew to instinctively strike that particular spot when Zabuza appeared was beyond anyone's comprehension, but they did know that with the cry Zabuza let out, it was very likely that his privates wouldn't be working right for quite some time, if at all ever again. "C'mon, stand up Zabuza! Let me hit 'em again! This is fun!"
All four guys that could still stand (Haku included) shuddered at this as they instinctively backed away from the crazed blonde-haired Genin. Upon seeing this, Naruto turned to everyone and smiled innocently. "What? They were wide open! They practically BEGGED for me to punch them!"
Zabuza struggled to his feet and narrowed his eyes angrily at the blonde Genin. Wincing in sheer agony at the pain that wracked his groin, the swordsman prepared to cut the psychotic little bastard down for doing something so outrageous. However, before he could even swing his sword in an attempt to cleave the little bastard in two, Kakashi was there, blocking the Kubikiribocho with a single kunai.
The ex-Kiri shinobi looked into the silver-haired man's eyes as tears streamed down his cheeks. "No! Please, just get out of my way! Kakashi, I'm begging you as a fellow man whose nuts were just smashed! Let me cleave the little shit in two! That's all I ask of you! One small favor and then I'll retreat! That's honestly all I'm asking of you right now!"
Kakashi could see the pain in the enemy shinobi's eyes, and as much as he felt the urge to comply with Zabuza's wish to kill his psychotic little Genin, the Jonin found himself shaking his head in a negative fashion. "I apologize Zabuza Momochi, but I cannot let you do that. Naruto is a member of Team 7, and as such I will protect him. No matter how…how cruel that was! Oh Kami!" Without warning, the two Jonin quickly threw their arms around each other as Kakashi began trying to console the poor ex-Kiri swordsman.
The others honestly couldn't figure out what to think of what was transpiring before them. After a few minutes of just watching the two grown men crying in each other's arms, Tazuna finally spoke up. "Ummm…should I be concerned?" Looking down, he saw the three Genin shrug their shoulders before he looked back at the two men that were hugging each other. I am honestly more confused than I have ever been in my entire life! What in the hell is going on here?!
After a few more minutes, Kakashi and Zabuza stepped away from each other and Zabuza found himself bowing his head momentarily to his enemy. "I need time to recuperate. We'll see each other again Kakashi of the Sharingan. Until then." Turning his gaze upon the little brat that smashed his nuts, Zabuza began to snarl. "As for you, I swear to Kami that I'll slaughter you next we meet you little shit!" With those parting words, Zabuza quickly disappeared with Haku following shortly after.
Once he was sure Zabuza had retreated, Kakashi lowered his hitai-ate over his Sharingan eye and turned to smile at his team. "Well, that was certainly an interesting experience." Turning his gaze on Naruto, Kakashi found himself shaking at the maniacal grin on the boy's face. "Naruto. Don't you ever, ever do that again. Understand?" When he received a nod and a simple "Yes Kaka-sensei." in return from the blonde, Kakashi eye smiled before he asked Tazuna to lead the way to the bridge builder's house.
Omake – Gibbs' Smack vs. V8 Bop!
After another hard day of training, Naruto and Kakashi found themselves in the middle of what Sasuke and Sakura could only assume was some form of deep, important conversation from how heated their argument was. They couldn't quite hear everything that was being said, but it wasn't something they wanted to get involved in.
"Kakashi-sensei, I understand where you're coming from, but c'mon! The V8 bop has some really useful properties as well. Yes, the Gibbs' smack is incredibly useful at catching your target off guard and causing a bit of a headache, but just think about it for a moment!"
Kakashi sighed for what felt like the millionth time before he shook his head. Deciding a hands-on approach would be the best solution to their problems, he looked over at the other members of Team 7 and smirked underneath his mask. "Sasuke, come over here. You're needed for something."
Sasuke shrugged his shoulders and walked over to the two. Almost immediately Kakashi turned Sasuke around so his back was to him. A split second later and Sasuke felt a hard smack to the back of his head. Spinning around, anger in his eyes, the Uchiha glared up at his sensei. "What the hell was that for?!"
Naruto nodded his head at this and smiled up at the jonin sensei of Team 7. "Alright, I'll admit it's pretty damn useful. Not only does it catch your opponent off guard, but it causes a decent amount of pain and enrages them as well. Interesting. But…" The blonde Genin tapped Sasuke's shoulder and waited for his teammate to spin back around.
Before Sasuke could even get a word out, Naruto raised up his hand, palm flat, and bopped Sasuke roughly against his forehead. Sasuke blinked a few times before rubbing his head and looking around somewhat dazed.
Naruto grinned at the results before waving his hand at Sasuke. "See Kaka-sensei? The V8 bop is quite useful as well. Apply a little chakra to the palm of your hands at the moment you strike and you can truly disorient your opponent. Of course, it's also amusing to watch, so that's great as well."
Kakashi nodded his head, clearly accepting of Naruto's points. Then, it seemed as if the same idea occurred to the both of them at once. Smirking underneath his mask, Kakashi nodded at his pupil. "Sasuke, turn around and face me."
The Uchiha slowly turned to face his sensei, still feeling the effects of both the famous Gibbs' smack and the V8 bop in such a short amount of time from one another. However, what happened next was something he was truly unprepared for.
It happened in a matter of seconds. Sasuke felt a hard slap to the back of his head. Spinning around, ready to shout at Naruto to cut it the hell out, he was then bopped on the forehead again. Feeling very disoriented now, the Uchiha groaned and clutched at his head. "Oh Kami, my head."
Kakashi smirked as Naruto spoke. "Hmm, it would seem that by combining the techniques in succession like that, the effect is increased tremendously. Hey, I wonder what would happen if we performed the techniques at the exact same time?" At this point Sasuke looked incredibly fearful.
Before the Uchiha could back away, he received another Gibbs' smack courtesy of Kakashi and a V8 bop from Naruto. Having enough of this by now, Sasuke proceeded to faint right where he stood, collapsing to the ground in a heap. The Jonin and Genin duo burst out into raucous laughter, the two of them clearly enjoying this far more than they really should have.
Wiping a tear from his visible eye, Kakashi eye smiled brightly at his student. "Ahh that was pure gold. Combining them both is incredibly effective as well. We'll have to remember this for the future." Nodding in agreement, the two left Sasuke in the training ground while they went off to enjoy some Ichiraku's Ramen together.
Back in the training ground, Sakura quickly rushed over to Sasuke and began checking him over to see if he was alright. Upon judging that he seemed to be okay, she let out a sigh of relief. At least until she heard Sasuke mumble something under his breath that she never expected to hear. "Omelets and tomatoes…oh my." Suffice it to say, Sakura couldn't quite figure out what to make of that. It was then decided that she would try to steer clear of the two when they were discussing such things. After all, it wouldn't be prudent for her to undergo a similar experience as her dear Sasuke-kun just had to undergo.
A/N: This is a quick reminder. I'll be constantly switching back and forth from calling Naruki by her real name (Naruki) and Naruto (her fake name). This will continue to happen until her true gender has been revealed. Sooo, please bear with it for now. ^^;
On another note, yeppers! My first Omake! Hope you enjoyed it. ^^ I noticed I had been using the Gibbs' smack a lot in my fics without even realizing it. It gave me inspiration to add an omake in this fic that employed that element with Sasuke as a bit of a guinea pig.
Finally, I wanted to apologize if the chapter isn't as good as it could have been. I'm still out of my Citalopram, and without it my mind is just one big, jumbled mess. Most of the chapter I somehow managed to focus well enough on to make it fairly well I think. But there were parts where I can't even believe I managed to get anything done. If the chapter isn't to your liking, I am very sorry. Once again, gomenasai. *bows* I hope I can get my Citalopram again soon because I'm having a really, REAAAALLY hard time without it. .
Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Review/comment if you'd like, tell me what you liked and/or didn't like, etc. Thanks for reading! ^^